Movable sand plow for locomotive

Abstract

A moveable plow for a locomotive suitable for operating in sandy environments is provided. The moveable plow comprises a body and a wearable lip. The body forms a curl at its top edge along substantially the entire body width to channel the flow of sand outwardly. The lip is removably affixed to the body and contacts a rail. The moveable plow is attached to a bogie by a pneumatically operated height adjusting mechanism that can raise or lower the moveable plow. The moveable plow and rail define a sweep angle equal to or greater than an angle of repose of the sand in the surrounding environment.

We claim: 
     
       1. A moveable sand plow for removing sand from a pair of railroad rails, the moveable sand plow comprising:
 a pair of plow bodies including a first body and a second body, each of the first body and the second body having a width and defining a body plane that is substantially orthogonal to a plane defined by the pair of railroad rails, 
 a vertical direction of the moveable sand plow being orthogonal to the plane defined by the pair of railroad rails, a forward direction of the moveable sand plow being orthogonal to vertical direction, and a transverse direction of the moveable sand plow extending between the pair of railroad rails and being orthogonal to the vertical direction and the forward direction, 
 each of the first body and the second body extending from an inner vertical edge disposed between the pair of railroad rails to an outer vertical edge disposed outside of the pair of railroad rails, and extending from a lower edge to a top edge along the vertical direction, 
 the inner vertical edge of the first body being spaced apart from the inner vertical edge of the second body along the transverse direction, 
 the inner vertical edge of each of the first body and the second body being disposed forward of the outer vertical edge of the first body and the second body along the forward direction, 
 each of the first body and the second body including
 a curl that defines the top edge, the curl extending along substantially an entire body width to channel a flow of sand outward of the pair of railroad rails, the curl being most pronounced at the outer vertical edge, and 
 a lip removably affixed to and extending downwardly from the lower edge, the lip having a substantially linear first edge and a parallel, opposing substantially linear second edge, 
 
 each of the first body and the second body defining a plurality of vertical slots therethrough, each vertical slot of the plurality of vertical slots at least partly facing the forward direction; and 
 a pneumatically operated height adjusting mechanism coupled to each of the first body and the second body via fasteners through the plurality of vertical slots, the pneumatically operated height adjusting mechanism being configured to couple the pair of plow bodies to a bogie of a locomotive, and being configured to raise or lower the moveable plow along the vertical direction, 
 wherein the lip of each of the first body and the second body is moveable between a first position in which the first edge is facing down along the vertical direction and a second position in which the second edge is facing down along the vertical direction. 
 
     
     
       2. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein the body is made from metal, and the lip is made from polyurethane. 
     
     
       3. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein the moveable sand plow has an unobstructed planar front face except for bolts extending forward of the front face along the forward direction. 
     
     
       4. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein each lip is invertible between a first position in which the first edge is positioned to contact a respective rail of the pair of railroad rails and a second position in which the second edge is positioned to contact the respective rail. 
     
     
       5. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein the moveable sand plow is positioned over the pair of railroad rails so that the first body straddles one rail of the pair of railroad rails, and the second body straddles another rail of the pair of railroad rails. 
     
     
       6. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein the moveable sand plow is mounted to a wheeled locomotive and has a height relative to the wheeled locomotive that can be adjusted to compensate for a variation in locomotive wheel diameter. 
     
     
       7. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein the moveable sand plow and the pair or railroad rails define a sweep angle (Ø) equal to or greater than an angle of repose (α) of the sand. 
     
     
       8. The moveable sand plow of  claim 1 , wherein the moveable sand plow and the pair of railroad rails define a sweep angle (Ø) between about 30 degrees and about 45 degrees. 
     
     
       9. The moveable sand plow of  claim 8 , wherein the moveable sand plow and the pair of railroad rails define a sweep angle (Ø) of about 37.5 degrees. 
     
     
       10. A method for positioning a height of a moveable sand plow of a plow system with respect to a pair of railroad rails, the moveable sand plow being mounted to one locomotive of a series of connected wheeled locomotives,
 the moveable sand plow comprising a pair of plow bodies including a first body and a second body, each of the first body and the second body having a width and defining a body plane that is substantially orthogonal to a plane defined by the pair of railroad rails, 
 a vertical direction of the moveable sand plow being orthogonal to the plane defined by the pair of railroad rails, a forward direction of the moveable sand plow being orthogonal to vertical direction, and a transverse direction of the moveable sand plow extending between the pair of railroad rails and being orthogonal to the vertical direction and the forward direction, 
 each of the first body and the second body extending from an inner vertical edge disposed between the pair of railroad rails to an outer vertical edge disposed outside of the pair of railroad rails, and extending from a lower edge to a top edge along the vertical direction, 
 the inner vertical edge of the first body being spaced apart from the inner vertical edge of the second body along the transverse direction, 
 the inner vertical edge of each of the first body and the second body being disposed forward of the outer vertical edge of the first body and the second body along the forward direction, 
 each of the first body and the second body including
 a curl that defines the top edge, the curl extending along substantially an entire body width to channel a flow of sand outward of the pair of railroad rails, the curl being most pronounced at the outer vertical edge, and 
 a lip removably affixed to and extending downwardly from the lower edge, the lip having a substantially linear first edge and a parallel, opposing substantially linear second edge, 
 
 each of the first body and the second body defining a plurality of vertical slots therethrough, each vertical slot of the plurality of vertical slots at least partly facing the forward direction; and 
 a pneumatically operated height adjusting mechanism coupled to each of the first body and the second body via fasteners through the plurality of vertical slots, the pneumatically operated height adjusting mechanism being configured to couple the pair of plow bodies to a bogie of a locomotive, and being configured to raise or lower the moveable plow along the vertical direction, 
 wherein the lip of each of the first body and the second body is moveable between a first position in which the first edge is facing down along the vertical direction and a second position in which the second edge is facing down along the vertical direction, 
 the method comprising: 
 activating the plow system using a single switch; 
 determining, via the plow system, which direction the locomotive is moving along the pair of railroad rails; and 
 automatically adjusting, via the plow system, the height of the first body and the second body relative to a first rail and a second rail, respectively, of the pair of railroad rails until the first body contacts the first rail and the second body contacts the second rail.